Periodic Reporting for period 2 - AquaBattery (A 100% sustainable and infinitely scalable electrical energy storage system)
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2023-04-01 do 2025-02-28
Electrification of the world drives the power demand. And Net-zero ambitions drive high renewables growth, which means more power demand with intermittent supply. High reliance of intermittent renewables raises security of supply concerns, and with that business continuity. Grid congestion & reliability hinder bussines growth. About 10% curtailment and around €600bln needed grid expansion in EU impossible – making the grid unreliable to support business growth.
The renewable energy transition is not only essential to tackle climate change but also a strategic priority for Europe’s energy security and long-term competitiveness. To stay on track with its 2030 climate and energy targets, the EU must install 592 GW of solar and 510 GW of wind capacity, according to the International Energy Agency. Achieving this ambitious buildout requires 200 GW of energy storage to ensure stable grid operation and enable the integration of variable renewable energy sources. Of this, 65 GW must come from novel long-duration energy storage (LDES) technologies—capable of delivering power for 8 to 100 hours—up from just 4.5 GW currently operational or under development.
Aquabattery’s solution is a salt water flow battery to create power flexibility and to provide the world with highly affordable Long duration energy storage that is clean, infinitely scalable, and safe to enable a responsible transition to a 100 % renewable energy system.
As part of the EIC Accelerator project, AquaBattery will develop a modular power unit rooted on its membrane stack based patented technology, marking a significant step toward scalable, long-duration energy storage. Housed in a standard sea container, this compact unit is designed for easy transport and installation, enabling rapid deployment across diverse applications—from microgrids to utility-scale storage. The membrane stack facilitates the controlled flow of saltwater during charging and discharging, converting renewable electricity into stored chemical energy and back with high efficiency. This modular approach not only enhances flexibility but also dramatically lowers deployment barriers, supporting decentralised and resilient energy systems. With this development, AquaBattery aims to accelerate the adoption of sustainable, non-toxic energy storage and make a meaningful contribution to Europe’s clean energy transition & Clean Industrial Deal’s goals.
The renewable energy transition is not only essential to tackle climate change but also a strategic priority for Europe’s energy security and long-term competitiveness. To stay on track with its 2030 climate and energy targets, the EU must install 592 GW of solar and 510 GW of wind capacity, according to the International Energy Agency. Achieving this ambitious buildout requires 200 GW of energy storage to ensure stable grid operation and enable the integration of variable renewable energy sources. Of this, 65 GW must come from novel long-duration energy storage (LDES) technologies—capable of delivering power for 8 to 100 hours—up from just 4.5 GW currently operational or under development.
Aquabattery’s solution is a salt water flow battery to create power flexibility and to provide the world with highly affordable Long duration energy storage that is clean, infinitely scalable, and safe to enable a responsible transition to a 100 % renewable energy system.
As part of the EIC Accelerator project, AquaBattery will develop a modular power unit rooted on its membrane stack based patented technology, marking a significant step toward scalable, long-duration energy storage. Housed in a standard sea container, this compact unit is designed for easy transport and installation, enabling rapid deployment across diverse applications—from microgrids to utility-scale storage. The membrane stack facilitates the controlled flow of saltwater during charging and discharging, converting renewable electricity into stored chemical energy and back with high efficiency. This modular approach not only enhances flexibility but also dramatically lowers deployment barriers, supporting decentralised and resilient energy systems. With this development, AquaBattery aims to accelerate the adoption of sustainable, non-toxic energy storage and make a meaningful contribution to Europe’s clean energy transition & Clean Industrial Deal’s goals.
The AquaBattery team has been continuously improving the design of its flagship stack and its process control. In addition, it is carrying out detailed planning for establishing a quality-focused stack assembly facility that utilizes lean methodologies.
The compression behaviour of the stack was studied and a previous version of membrane stack was tested at a pilot location in the Netherlands. The learnings from this pilot were used to design the latest version of the stack. Major improvements include new spacer designs for optimal flow distribution, better clamping methods to reduce leakages, and reduced number of components to improve manufacturability and reduce costs.
To improve the process control, AquaBattery conducted research to analyse various parameters such as membrane resistances, self-discharge, current densities, flow rates, and solution concentrations. For conducting experiments, AquaBattery designed a lab version of the stack which is smaller in size and allows quick testing of proof of concepts. In addition, AquaBattery built a quality control setup for testing its flagship stacks. This setup has a variety of sensors that enables close monitoring of performance and optimization of the operation parameters. As a result of research conducted, AquaBattery has acquired a fundamental understanding of the various parameters to enhance the performance of the stack.
Aquabattery is taking a lean approach to the assembly of stacks. The team has prepared plans to incorporate industrial-level standards for its facility with a main focus on continuous improvement. Furthermore, Aquabattery has partnered with a company to pre-treat membranes, that will result into a cost reduction of 50% for membrane cutting and a 60% reduction in stack assembly time.
The compression behaviour of the stack was studied and a previous version of membrane stack was tested at a pilot location in the Netherlands. The learnings from this pilot were used to design the latest version of the stack. Major improvements include new spacer designs for optimal flow distribution, better clamping methods to reduce leakages, and reduced number of components to improve manufacturability and reduce costs.
To improve the process control, AquaBattery conducted research to analyse various parameters such as membrane resistances, self-discharge, current densities, flow rates, and solution concentrations. For conducting experiments, AquaBattery designed a lab version of the stack which is smaller in size and allows quick testing of proof of concepts. In addition, AquaBattery built a quality control setup for testing its flagship stacks. This setup has a variety of sensors that enables close monitoring of performance and optimization of the operation parameters. As a result of research conducted, AquaBattery has acquired a fundamental understanding of the various parameters to enhance the performance of the stack.
Aquabattery is taking a lean approach to the assembly of stacks. The team has prepared plans to incorporate industrial-level standards for its facility with a main focus on continuous improvement. Furthermore, Aquabattery has partnered with a company to pre-treat membranes, that will result into a cost reduction of 50% for membrane cutting and a 60% reduction in stack assembly time.
AquaBattery conducted a study of compression behavior of stack which suggested that an optimal pressure needs to be applied uniformly across the stack to avoid leakages. Non-uniformly applied pressure results in leakages.
A new method was developed that introduces a reinforcement on top of the pressure plate of the stack to provide uniform pressure. This improves performance by reducing compression variations leading to improved sealing. Further improvement in design led to a reduction in the number of components and the weight of required steel by 25%.
AquaBattery improved the design of a stack component called divider which may reduce short-circuit currents across the stack. This may result in increment of the energy efficiency of the stack. AquaBattery has plans to conduct tests to validate this improvement.
The research on process control led to many insights related to state of charge, current density, and flow rates. Optimizing these parameters is likely to result into a 25% improvement in energy density as compared to the previous pilot.
A new method was developed that introduces a reinforcement on top of the pressure plate of the stack to provide uniform pressure. This improves performance by reducing compression variations leading to improved sealing. Further improvement in design led to a reduction in the number of components and the weight of required steel by 25%.
AquaBattery improved the design of a stack component called divider which may reduce short-circuit currents across the stack. This may result in increment of the energy efficiency of the stack. AquaBattery has plans to conduct tests to validate this improvement.
The research on process control led to many insights related to state of charge, current density, and flow rates. Optimizing these parameters is likely to result into a 25% improvement in energy density as compared to the previous pilot.